Spring Cleaning Tips for Your Garage

“Only in America do we leave cars worth thousands of dollars in the driveway and put our useless junk in the garage.” –Anonymous.

First step (and this is for the ambitious), put all your junk in the driveway and promise to put nothing back in unless it’s of use and has a designated spot.

Give your garage a good scrubbing. Cover oil spills with cat litter overnight to absorb oil. Sweep up the cat litter and scrub remaining oil stains with laundry or dishwasher detergent. Rinse with water and you’ve got a shiny new concrete floor.

Now it’s time to start organizing. Delegate sections of the garage to different categories like tools, kids, and recreation equipment. Use bungee cords to corral sporting goods.

Utilize vertical space as much as possible by hanging large items like brooms, golf clubs and ladders. Cover up shelves and hanging items with long drapes to give your garage a polished look.

Properly dispose of hazardous materials like paint, batteries, oil and cleaning solutions. Check your local waste management company’s policy on hazardous materials. Usually they will direct you to a drop-off site in your area.

Donate furniture, tools, building materials and other home improvement related items to one of the 825 Habitat for Humanity’s ReStores.

If you feel like you’ve got a lot of treasures left, host a garage sale. Ask neighbors if they’d like to have a joint sale to increase your customer base.

Final tip: Many waste management companies offer customers a once or twice a year big item pickup. Now’s the time to capitalize on this service if you’ve still got junk left and you feel it’s not worth donating or selling.